BioVigil Unveils AccuWashTM for Precise Hand Hygiene Tracking in Healthcare and Beyond

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BioVigil, the leader in electronic hand hygiene technology solutions, has launched a hand wash solution powered by their new AccuWash^TM Technology, offering the most precise and thorough way to track a health provider's hand washing compliance.

In hospitals and skilled nursing facilities, handwashing with soap and water is required over hand sanitizer in certain situations, such as when a patient has a C. difficile infection. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer will not kill C. diff spores. When the care team sets a patient room protocol to "Contact Plus," BioVigil's sink sensor with AccuWash^TM Technology works with the BioVigil badge to alert health care providers to the sink washing protocol. AccuWash^TM Technology then determines whether they washed their hands. This has been shown to reduce cross contamination and healthcare associated infections (HAIs).

"This sink beacon uses thermal energy and a set of sophisticated sensors to detect when hands go into the sink. That starts a timer, which provides visual cues as the user is washing and as they reach the CDC-recommended 20-second length of time," said Ben Wood, director of Engineering and Technology. "When the wash is complete, the sink beacon turns green. If the user stops the wash before it's complete, it is not recorded as compliant."

The sink beacon with AccuWash^TM Technology is part of a complete electronic hand hygiene system including a room sensor, badge sensor and robust data suite. Health care facilities have wide-ranging information from the facility down to individual levels, which can be used for contact tracing and to monitor hand hygiene compliance.

The BioVigil system has helped numerous partners across the country improve hand hygiene behavior, reduce HAIs by up to 83%, achieve 97% hand hygiene compliance, and improve LeapFrog quality grades.

"No other hand hygiene monitoring solution has the capability of AccuWash^TM Technology to track a complete hand wash down to the individual health care provider," said Sanjay Gupta, president and CEO.  "AccuWash^TM Technology enhances our solution that also uses alcohol sensing badges to detect whether hand sanitizer was used. It goes well beyond other systems that merely measure clicks of and proximity to a product dispenser."

Sink sensors with AccuWash^TM Technology are being used at pilot sites, including acute care hospitals and long-term care facilities.  Initial results indicate high user satisfaction, ease of use and compliance. Patient visitors appear motivated by the visual alerts on the sink beacon, which contributes to a more thorough wash. The product will be commercially available in early 2024.

The AccuWash^TM Technology also has the potential to be used in commercial food preparation, restaurant and other settings. BioVigil is in talks with several other industries to discuss future applications.